Medical Assistant And Nurses - How To Tell The Differences

Technology is greatly advancing - computers, phones, laptops, cars and of course even the medical technology. Just as the technology is rapidly changing so as the human population is rapidly increasing. In line to this, research shows that these two factors have a great impact to people. Technology had made the lives of many people effortless and comfortable resulting to unsanitary lifestyle making them prone to disease. In the same way, the advanced medical technology served as life sustainer to the people. Therefore, more people are required in order to support with the growing medical needs of people.

These days healthcare employers are hiring medical assistants and experts to counter the demand in health care. On the other hand, it should not be flawed with nursing. Although they each fall in healthcare assisting, they do have lots of differences.

Training
Nurse is a degree. To to be a nurse, one must need to finish the 4-year course and needs to pass the board exams before getting a job. While medical assistant does not need any official education and its training would only take six months to one year to finish. Also, medical assistants are not compelled to take the authentication unlike nurses who needs to be registered before applying for a job.

Duties
Nurse takes vital signs, take notes to medical records while Medical Assistants most of the time do clerical or administrative works. On the other hand in some cases they do both clerical and administrative responsibilities. Although MA can also take vital signs and other clinical works, they are not highly trained for administering and caring for patient's medical requirements and performing bedside care. Besides, if a nurse has a bachelor degree, he or she is allowed to give medications unlike medical assistant who needs the direction of a doctor before he or she can give medication.

Work Place
Nurse can work in nursing homes, home health care or in any other healthcare facilities and centers while medical assistant cannot as these healthcare amenities do lack doctors. Medical assistants as requisite by the law, should only work in an area where doctors or any other medical practitioner is present. Besides, MA are allowed to do ancillary in-house tests under the direct supervision of medical doctor or a registered healthcare practitioner.

Managing
Medical assistant often take orders and instructions from doctors or other medical practitioners including nurses. While nurses have dependent, independent and team functions.

Given those differences, both of them should act in accordance with a healthcare facility's Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act or HIPAA, Occupational Safety and Health Administration or OSHA, Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments or CLIA and Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organization or JCAHO. Both healthcare assisting careers ought to work efficiently and proficiently under pressure and in emergency situations.

Finally, nurses are licensed professionals with a degree. Their work is to treat patients. Also, they are responsible for educating patients about health-care. While medical assistants are those people who do not only clinical responsibilities but supervisory responsibilities as well. They are the ones who guarantee that the hospitals or the clinics are working smoothly.

Both medical assistants or nurses are functional in the health care delivery system. These healthcare assistants are important in keeping up in meeting the needs of people when it comes to healthcare.



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